UEL: Liverpool did everything Toulouse - and they succeeded

If you haven't got a defence - you haven't got a team. Liverpool served as a perfect example of the unwritten rule on Thursday night as a string of terrible defensive lapses led to an unexpected 3-2 defeat at the hands of Ligue 1 strugglers Toulouse.

It never looked like it could end this way for Jurgen Klopp's team but mistakes from a second-string team meant that the hosts scored three times without even breaking a sweat.

Toulouse started the game on the offensive. Mikkel Desler tried to break through the Liverpool defense, but Thijs Dallinga was caught offside. Wataru Endo of Liverpool received a yellow card for a strong challenge.

The opening goal came in the 35th minute when Aron Donnum of Toulouse fired a left-footed shot from the right side of the box. His strike found the back of the net via a slight deflection - but it was a goal that came from Kostas Tsimikas' poor positioning in defence. With Andy Robertson still out injured, the Greek defender will have to do much better than this.

Klopp's men tried to answer back with Harvey Elliott launching a left-footed shot from the right side of the box, but it was blocked. The match became increasingly physical, with Endo committing another foul. Toulouse's Cristian Casseres won a free kick in their defensive half, setting up a strategic opportunity.

Endo was lucky not to get a second yellow when he recklessly slid in on Cristian Casseres. As the half neared its end, Toulouse launched a late offensive. Niklas Schmidt unleashed a powerful right-footed shot from outside the box, which was expertly saved by the Liverpool goalkeeper. Rasmus Nicolaisen had an opportunity with a header following a corner, but it sailed high and wide to the left.

Thijs Dallinga doubled the lead for the French team just before the hour mark to the disbelief of the travelling fans. The purple-and-whites have already had a goal disallowed, but this one stood as Dallinga expertly found Caoimhin Kelleher's far corner.

The Reds got back into the game ten minutes later - by pure chance. A cross came in and Casseres diverted it into his net with his shoulder without even knowing where in the world he was. Still, there was nothing to deny a famous win for the home team at Stadium de Toulouse, as Frank Magri finished easily after a string of comical defensive errors from Kelleher and Joe Gomez.

Substitute Diogo Jota scored with a minute of the 90 remaining, but the added seven minutes didn't offer much apart from a few minutes of VAR drama. Jarell Quansah thought he scored his first Liverpool goal deep in added time, but it was disallowed after a VAR review because cameras caught a Liverpool player controlling the ball with his arm in the build-up.

Elsewhere, Brighton & Hove Albion have taken control of their destiny in the UEFA Europa League qualification race with back-to-back wins over Ajax. In their latest victory, the Seagulls claimed a 2-0 triumph against the Dutch giants in Amsterdam. Simon Adingra intercepted a pass and drove forward before finding Ansu Fati, who calmly slotted the ball into the net to give Brighton the lead in the first half. Adingra himself scored a goal in the second half to seal the victory.

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE

Group stage - matchday 4

Thursday

Ajax - Brighton 0-2 (0-1)

/Fati 15, Adingra 53/

LASK - Royale Union Saint-Gilloise 3-0 (2-0)

/Horvath 25, Talovierov 45+4, Zulj 77/

Maccabi Haifa - Villarreal 1-2 (1-0)

/Seck 32 - Baena 83, Sorloth 87/

Qarabag - Bayer Leverkusen 0-1 (0-0)

/Boniface 90+3 pen/

Rennes - Panathinaikos 3-1 (1-1)

/Rieder 9, Salah 65, Blas 70 pen - Ioannidis 34/

Servette - Sreriff Tiraspol 2-1 (0-1)

/Rouiller 84, Bedia 90 pen - Severin 12 og/

Slavia Prague - Roma 2-0 (0-0)

/Jurecka 50, Masopust 74/

Toulouse - Liverpool 3-2 (1-0)

/Donnum 36, Dallinga 58, Magri 76 - Casseres 74 og, Diogo Jota 89/

23:00: (1.15) Freiburg (8.00) TSC Backa Topola (16.0)

23:00: (1.67) West Ham (3.80) Olympiakos (5.30)

23:00: (2.55) AEK (3.50) Olympique Marseille (2.85)

23:00: (1.32) Betis (5.30) Aris Limmasol (9.50)

23:00: (2.10) Rangers (3.50) Sparta Praha (3.80)

23:00: (1.27) Atalanta (5.90) Sturm (10.5)

23:00: (1.25) Sporting (6.00) Rakow (11.0)

23:00: (2.75) Hacken (3.45) Molde (2.50)

***odds are subject to change***